Five South Australian public schools have been awarded up to $50,000 each to support them to trial innovative approaches for improving the effectiveness, quality or sustainability of languages learning in the primary years.

Successful projects to receive grants recipients include exploring augmented and virtual reality to teach Italian and creating a weekly broadcast station with a Japanese sister school.

The five schools to share in the grant funding are Leigh Creek Area School, Sandy Creek Primary School, Athelstone Primary School, Goodwood Primary School and Seacliff Primary School.

To qualify as innovative, the proposed projects had to creatively apply new knowledge, technologies, practices, pedagogies or structures to improve languages education.

“These grants will allow five of our primary schools to trial their innovative ideas to improve the learning of languages in the primary years,” said Education Minister John Gardner.

“Learning a language has become increasingly important in a globalised market, and it is also beneficial for students’ overall cognitive and academic development.

“We are delighted with the innovative thinking shown by our primary schools and their desire to implement new knowledge and practices in languages education.

“The Marshall Liberal Government remains committed to reinvigorating the study of languages in schools.

“Improving and advancing the way we teach languages in public schools will continue to ensure that we are delivering a world-class education system.”

The successful projects are:

Leigh Creek Area Schoolwill employ Culturally Responsive Pedagogies and collaborate with community, on Country, to build, strengthen and learn Adnyamathanha, the local Aboriginal language.

Sandy Creek Primary Schoolwill create a weekly multi-media ‘broadcast station’ with their students and Japanese sister school to increase daily use of Japanese in the school.

Athelstone Primary Schoolwill explore the potential of augmented and virtual reality to provide connected and experiential language learning by providing immersive experiences in Italian within a virtual platform.

Goodwood Primary Schoolwill produce a digital resource library to bring Mandarin language into the mainstream classroom by linking it to other learning areas in the curriculum.

Seacliff Primary Schoolwill work with parents and students to develop community guided Content and Language Integrated Learning programs in the mainstream classroom and across learning areas (e.g Japanese in Science).